As with quite a few of the first signups to pCARS1, I was there purely because of Shift. Or, rather, the nogrip forum. I just happened to be browsing that forum when Ian popped up and proposed his idea and right from the start I was hooked, I knew I wanted to take part.

Think about it. You're a PC gamer at heart. You've been playing computer games (and handheld motor racing games) since the late 70s. You've bought wheels, upgraded them to force feedback versions, you've completed entire seasons of Geoff Crammond's Grand Prix at the highest skill level. Then, out of nowhere, the boss of the game you've just poured hours of your life into pops up and offers you the chance to watch a game develop right before your eyes. But better than that, you can share ideas of what you want from the game, you can test every single day, provide feedback right to the heart of the development team. And, as if that wasn't enough, you have the chance to get some money back at the end, when the game goes on sale. Yeah, show me a proper gamer out there that wouldn't jump at that opportunity.

I'll be frank and honest here. I originally signed up for pCARS1 at 'Senior' level (€100 to you and me). That provided more than I needed or wanted from the project but I wanted to show a little more faith in the devs than a basic buy-in. As funding was nearing completion, I bought extra toolpacks, for 2 reasons. Firstly, I wanted to see that target hit, I wanted the devs to feel a little safer, knowing that the money was there. Secondly, yes, that little devil on my right shoulder was whispering in my ear "think of the profits" . But from the start, the end profits (which no WMD1 member can deny have been anything except very healthy) were not my primary motivator, seeing a game evolve under my nose was. Oh, and trying to be the cheekiest sod on the forum, constantly finding what the limits were in terms of "taking the piss out of the devs", in an affectionate "matey" way of course.

WMD1 was, for many of us, a healthy obsession. For some, which I will hold my hand up to, it was an unhealthy obsession, more of an addiction. Barely a few hours would pass between a visit to the forum, to see what new thing was happening, what new license had been signed, what new feature had been added, what new "ribbon in the sky" we were going to get to play with next - on that note, this is the one thing I missed the most in pCARS2 development, for most of the tracks were well developed before we got our grubby mitts on them!

But I tell you what WMD did, that no other game has done before for me. It created friendships, proper real friendships that stand to this day. Beyond just racing with a few like-minded individuals, beyond chatting to people through the forum, through the in-game chat and then on to things like TeamSpeak. No, actually meeting these friends in real life at proper motorsports events. Those are the things that will stand the test of time, that all of those that made friends will remember long after pCARS1 and 2 have gone from our hard drives.

And with those drunken ramblings, I commend this statement to the house. I would also like to raise a glass to a few folks, for whom I wouldn't be typing this today:

Remco - well, you were there at the start, you're to blame!Bealdor - for your invaluable support in my brief tenure as a moderator hereTomC - for being the best of sports and taking all of my photoshops in the spirit they were intendedElmo - for the multiple passenger rides around the 'ring and the fantastic hospitalityAndy Garton - your acerbic humour and your ability to spill secrets on the WMD forum after one too many beers has been the source of more laughs than I care to mentionIan Bell - for seeing your cunning plan through to fruition, for staying true to your word and for putting up with more shit than the creator of an entertainment product should ever have to
and to everbody else at Slightly Mad Studios throughout the development of Project CARS 1 and 2. Last, but not least, I cannot let the thanks slip by without a big shout out to everybody at RevolutionSimRacing

There are loads more people I could thank, for very personal and individual reasons but I would run out of space and I doubt anybody would have read this far anyway. I can type what I like now, nobody is still reading. Look, a pink womble riding a yellow donkey, flying a 747 upside-down down the River Thames, that's not something you read every day is it? Aren't you glad you got this far and got to read that? No? Oh well, keep scrolling down, I'm sure you'll find something exciting to read .

There are loads more people I could thank, for very personal and individual reasons but I would run out of space and I doubt anybody would have read this far anyway. I can type what I like now, nobody is still reading. Look, a pink womble riding a yellow donkey, flying a 747 upside-down down the River Thames, that's not something you read every day is it? Aren't you glad you got this far and got to read that? No? Oh well, keep scrolling down, I'm sure you'll find something exciting to read .

I guess Cluck waiting so long for his internet to be sorted out (by BT was it?) has made him even more mad

NFS Shift and nogripracing brought me to WMD in 2011, but didn't take the leap with my money until 2012. Was too busy still working on the Community Patch for Shift 2: Unleashed. The rest is as they say, history.

WMD1 was, for many of us, a healthy obsession. For some, which I will hold my hand up to, it was an unhealthy obsession, more of an addiction. Barely a few hours would pass between a visit to the forum, to see what new thing was happening, what new license had been signed, what new feature had been added, what new "ribbon in the sky" we were going to get to play with next - on that note, this is the one thing I missed the most in pCARS2 development, for most of the tracks were well developed before we got our grubby mitts on them!

But I tell you what WMD did, that no other game has done before for me. It created friendships, proper real friendships that stand to this day. Beyond just racing with a few like-minded individuals, beyond chatting to people through the forum, through the in-game chat and then on to things like TeamSpeak. No, actually meeting these friends in real life at proper motorsports events. Those are the things that will stand the test of time, that all of those that made friends will remember long after pCARS1 and 2 have gone from our hard drives.

And with those drunken ramblings, I commend this statement to the house. I would also like to raise a glass to a few folks, for whom I wouldn't be typing this today:

Remco - well, you were there at the start, you're to blame!Bealdor - for your invaluable support in my brief tenure as a moderator hereTomC - for being the best of sports and taking all of my photoshops in the spirit they were intendedElmo - for the multiple passenger rides around the 'ring and the fantastic hospitalityAndy Garton - your acerbic humour and your ability to spill secrets on the WMD forum after one too many beers has been the source of more laughs than I care to mentionIan Bell - for seeing your cunning plan through to fruition, for staying true to your word and for putting up with more shit than the creator of an entertainment product should ever have to
and to everbody else at Slightly Mad Studios throughout the development of Project CARS 1 and 2. Last, but not least, I cannot let the thanks slip by without a big shout out to everybody at RevolutionSimRacing

This
Truer words have rarely been spoken.
I think it's about time to raise our glasses and bow our heads to the wonderful chaps at SMS

Already had much respect for Ian and the developement team for giving us one of my favorite games and absolute favorite racing sim. But reading that got me in the feels a bit, and much more respect for sms if that was even possible.

I am a WMD supporter since 2011.
But the funny thing is i knew who Doug Arnao was before Project Cars. I remember downloading his Setup Files for Grand Prix Legends back in around 2004. They were the best Setups for GPL.

Very cool. Big shoutout to Ian Bell for making this happen! And of course everyone who participated. I was never part of it, and I probably wouldn't of taken part even if I knew about it. But the story is indeed very inspirational. Many Thanks.

Some people don’t realize that when they don’t like PC2, they don’t like a racer built BY and FOR sim racers. It really does strive to be the game the community demands. It is why the devs appear on these forums. It is why people get defensive when the devs are treated unfairly. They do listen. More than that, they interact. Communicate like mature adults and help make the game better. That is how it has always worked. That is the Project in Project CARS.

It's also fair to say that a lot of newcomers don't realize why CARS is capitalized. That it's an acronym for Community Assisted Racing Simulator. WMD members have a sense of ownership with it. One that can never be taken away. A lot of us have our names directly in the credits, myself included. It's a small thing but seeing some of my Race Liveries in the finished products that everyone the world over that owns the game get to enjoy as well... well that's just icing on the cake.